The Queen’s Rival cover art

The Queen’s Rival

 Preview
Try Premium Plus free
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

The Queen’s Rival

By: Anne O'Brien
Narrated by: Elaine Claxton
Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £16.99

Buy Now for £16.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

The forgotten story of Cecily Neville, duchess of York. A strong woman who claimed the throne for her family in a time of war....

One family united by blood. Torn apart by war....

England, 1459: Cecily, duchess of York, is embroiled in a plot to topple the weak-minded King Henry VI from the throne. But when the Yorkists are defeated at the Battle of Ludford Bridge, Cecily’s family flees and abandons her to face a marauding Lancastrian army on her own.

Cecily can only watch as her lands are torn apart and divided up by the ruthless Queen Marguerite. From the towers of her prison in Tonbridge Castle, the duchess begins to spin a web of deceit - one that will eventually lead to treason, to the fall of King Henry VI and to her eldest son being crowned king of England.

This is a story of heartbreak, ambition and treachery, of one woman’s quest to claim the throne during the violence and tragedy of the Wars of the Roses.

©2020 Anne O'Brien (P)2020 HarperCollins Publishers Limited Historical Historical Fiction Medieval Royalty Thriller & Suspense King Fiction England War Heartfelt

Listeners also enjoyed...

 The Royal Game cover art
A Tapestry of Treason cover art
A Marriage of Fortune cover art
Queen of the North cover art
The Summer Queen cover art
Twice Royal Lady cover art
American Princess cover art
Boudicca: Britain's Queen of the Iceni cover art
The Indigo Girl cover art
The Summer Palace cover art
Plantagenet Princess, Tudor Queen cover art
The Secret Life of Sunflowers cover art
The Midwife's Revolt cover art
The Kennedy Debutante cover art
America's First Daughter cover art
The Turbulent Crown cover art

Critic reviews

"One of the best writers around." (Sun)

"A terrific storyteller." (Daily Telegraph)

"This thrilling historical novel has it all - high politics, drama, emotion, excellent writing.... It's a rollercoaster of a read." (Carol McGrath)
All stars
Most relevant  
Written in the form of third party chronicles and letters . Not my favourite of this author’s books.

Queens Rival

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Being a history buff,I try to read between the lines,in this book,a lot of letters were written,from mother to sons.I love intrigue.

The queen's rival.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A wonderful reading of the life of Cecily, Duchess of York, mother to two English kings.
Although I was aware of Cecily due to interest in the family Plantagenet, listening to her life through some of the most tumultuous times in English history was both informative and interesting. It is so good to hear about those that play a second role, not always given their due place in our history and I found that to be true in this reading.

A most informative listen.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I found the flow really spoilt (and rather tedious) by the repetition of each name and full title in each of the letters.

A good narrative

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
the Duchess Cecile is truly one of the most remarkable woman of English history. this book is written as series of letters and prayers a format that rapidly becomes extremely tiresome and more then a little irritating.

the lady narrator does her best but there are far too many "from so-and-so to so-and-so from wherever to wherever' repetitions to keep any listener engaged

tiresome format

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.